Armor systems are known in the art and are currently being used in a wide range of applications, including, for example, aircraft, armored vehicles, and body armor systems, wherein it is desirable to provide protection against bullets and other projectiles. While early armor systems tended to rely on a single layer of a hard and brittle material, such as a ceramic material, it was soon recognized that the effectiveness of the armor system could be improved considerably if the ceramic material were affixed to or backed up with an energy-absorbing material, such as fiberglass. The presence of the energy-absorbing backup layer tends to reduce the spallation caused by impact of the projectile with the ceramic material or “impact layer” of the armor system, thereby reducing the damage caused by the projectile impact. Testing has demonstrated that such multi-layer armor systems tend to stop projectiles at higher velocities than do the ceramic materials when utilized without the backup layer.
While such multi-layer armoring systems are being used with some degree of success, they are not without their problems. For example, difficulties are often encountered in creating a structure capable of withstanding multiple projectile impacts. Another problem relates to the overall performance (e.g., energy-absorbing/deflecting capability) of the armor system, and improvements in performance are always desirable.
Partly in an effort to solve the foregoing problems, armor systems have been proposed wherein the ceramic material is coated or encapsulated with a metal. The encapsulating metal coating would, at least in theory, provide some degree of structural confinement to the ceramic core material, thereby improving the ability of the ceramic core material to withstand multiple impacts. A number of manufacturing methods have been developed to fabricate metal-encapsulated ceramic armor systems, including processes that involve welding, machining, pressing, powder metallurgy, and casting. Unfortunately, however, the methods developed to date are not without their problems relating to technical feasibility, manufacturing, or economics. Consequently, the concept of an encapsulated armor system is likely to be abandoned unless a method can be developed that is feasible from both technical and economic standpoints.